President Donald Trump has made deportation of illegal immigrants one of the more important actions of his administration, and that has been a contentious issue for some.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has made huge leaps toward arresting and removing criminal illegal aliens, and a court ruled with the administration's efforts would prevail against environmental groups that wanted to shut down a holding facility for said criminals, as The Daily Mail reported.

Florida saw a victory this week when an appeals court blocked a federal court’s order to dismantle the facility known as “Alligator Alcatraz.”

The court heard the Florida appeal after environmental groups found a friendly judge who ruled the state needed to prioritize the area where the facility was located, rather than law enforcement efforts.

From The State

Florida’s Attorney General James Uthmeier spoke out about the issue, lauding the court’s decision to allow the facility to continue to run in the same location.

“Victory secured against activist judge who held me in contempt,” Uthmeier said on X.

“The 11th Circuit not only blocked Judge [Kathleen] Williams’ order to close Alligator Alcatraz, but they blocked her from proceeding with the case until the appeal is complete. A win for Florida and President [Donald] Trump’s agenda!”

The state is still possibly hamstrung since if it applies for Federal Emergency Management Agency funding, an environmental impact statement may be required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

Case History

Environmentalist groups, including Friends of the Everglades and Florida’s Miccosukee Tribe of Indians, petitioned a district court, asserting that the facility violated NEPA and the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).

The judge sided with the groups, finding that the government did not conduct an environmental impact review before the quick construction at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport.

Additionally, the judge ruled that the operation of the facility wasn’t in the best interest of the public, and closing it wouldn’t result in irreparable harm.

🚨JUST IN: Appeals court OVERRULES Activist Judges ruling, ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ will remain open, and conduct business as usual.

DEI! - Deport Every Illegal! https://t.co/6JHnHW1OMX

— DK🇺🇸🦅🇺🇸 (@1Nicdar) September 4, 2025

Unfortunately for the plaintiffs, the appeals court saw an issue with both rulings and handed down its 2-1 decision, siding with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Florida Division of Emergency Management.

According to circuit court judge Barbara Lagoa, defendants would most likely be able to prove that they didn’t violate NEPA or the APA due to a lack of evidence that there was any federal funding committed formally to the project.